“21st Century Endangered Species Transparency Act” Introduced in House

On March 26, 2015, House of Representatives Republican Cynthia Lummis (R-WY) introduced a bill (H.R. 1667) to amend Section 4(b) of the Endangered Species Act (ESA) to require the Secretary of Interior to “make publicly available on the…

National Marine Fisheries Service Accepts Two Petitions to List the Porbeagle Shark

On March 27, 2015, the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) accepted two petitions asking NMFS to list the Porbeagle shark (Lamna nasus) as threatened or endangered under the Endangered Species Act either throughout the entirety of its…

Agencies Must Aim for Recovery of the Species When Designating Critical Habitat

In a decision issued earlier this week, a U.S. District Court rejected the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s (Service) interpretation of the Endangered Species Act (ESA), finding that its interpretation of the critical habitat…

Lolita’s Safety and Well-Being Leads Advocates to Appeal to Court for Her Protection

On behalf of the Animal Legal Defense Fund, PETA, and Orca Network, animal law attorneys will be in court today to advocate for Lolita, a lonely orca trapped in the smallest orca tank in North America, at the infamous Miami Seaquarium.

Kathleen Stachowski Other Nations Anyone who works in the animal rights arena knows that a single day–nay, a single minute–can feature the most jubilant high and the utmost despairing low. One emotion…

Seth Victor As many of you may have already heard, Ringling Bros. is retiring elephants from its act and focusing on caring for elephants in a conservation center. Wayne Pacelles of HSUS described this move as a “Berlin Wall…

Their latest gambit of factory farming deception is unfolding in Arizona, where the legislature has passed House Bill 2150, which contains some red herring provisions to give it the illusion of being pro-animal…

There is a crisis with captive tigers across the nation, and the Obama administration must do something about it. By some estimates there are more tigers living in the United States today than there are remaining in the wild…

Dr. Jean Dodds, among the foremost pet health experts in the world, has weighed in on the pro's and con's of monthly heartworm preventative.As a rule, most of these drugs are well tolerated by a healthy animal. But as a rule, heartworm…

October 23, 2013 the Texas Board of Veterinary medical Examiners reprimanded a Vet for incorrectly telling clients that animals need an annual rabies vaccine when the animals had received three year rabies vaccines. As far as I know, this is…

Animal Law Update

More birds may die in cage-free interior facilities than in more conventional hen-housing. That is one of the results of a three-year long study comparing “conventional cage, enriched colony and cage-free aviary laying hen housing…

USDA is actively tracking and reporting on the continued spread of highly pathogenic H5N2 Avian Influenza virus in backyard flocks, commercial flocks and wild birds throughout the United States. Laboratory results are reported on USDA’s…

Dogs and other animals can transport pests and diseases into the country. In 2007 and 2010, New World screwworm larvae, classified as a foreign pest by USDA, “were found on a dog that had recently entered the United States from Trinidad…

Equine Law Blog

Covers laws, legal developments, and "fine points" in the law that can have important consequences for businesses, associations, companies, non-profits, and individual horse owners. By Foster Swift Collins & Smith PC.

You’re about to apply for equine mortality insurance on your new horse. What you might not know is that these policies are unique, and some features of this type of insurance might surprise you. For example:…

Imagine owning a boarding stable that had a barn fire, causing loss to some of the horses. Imagine later being sued from a disgruntled boarder whose horse perished in the fire. This happened to a Michigan stable, and the stable faced an…

I've seen a number of legal issues pop up recently in regard to contract assignments, and wanted to help you know 1. What they are and 2. What you should do if you see one in your contractA contractual assignment is the transfer by one party…

Have you seen certain websites (like Equestrian Life) or blogs (like Dappled Grey Equestrian Style) close up shop, but as they do so, pitch an offer to sell the business to an interested party?Or perhaps your local hay seller or barn…

The Equine Entrepreneur Mastermind is an energetic, supportive, and educational membership for people who:Own a small business that sell equestrian products or services Want to grow the reach and financial profitability of their…

Our dog bite lawyers recently filed a lawsuit in the Livingston County Circuit Court on behalf of a client who suffered serious injuries to her hand and finger. She was attacked by the defendants black Labrador retriever at…

Our dog bite lawyers recently filed a lawsuit in the Macomb County Circuit Court on behalf of a client who suffered serious injuries to his face. He was attacked by the defendants pit-bull while standing at a bus stop in

May you all have a joyous holiday season. Thank you for rescuing and adopting dogs and cats from the shelter and rescue groups. It is heartwarming to know our Anipal furiends have a warm bed and full tummy!Merry ChristmasHappyHanukkahGod…

Tuck the Law Dog

Tuck is a legal beagle who works in a law office in Georgia. Tuck muses on animal rights, animal law, animal health, recent animal cruelty cases in all 50 states, and current events pertaining to animal rights and health (mainly dogs).

May all my furiends and their families have a very Merry Christmas and joyous holiday season. To all the hoomans, thank you for adopting and rescuing all the dogs and cats from the Animal Shelters. It is heart-warming to know ……

May all my furiends and their families have a very Merry Christmas and joyous holiday season. To all the hoomans, thank you for adopting and rescuing all the dogs and cats from the Animal Shelters. It is heart-warming to know ……

The Cherokee County Animal Shelter, Canton, Georgia, had a very successful adoption event this past Saturday, December 6th. All dogs were adopted! Santa and all his helpers were there! There was a big turnout for breakfast with and photos…

Florida Animal Law

The November 2014 Florida Bar Journal is a special issue dedicated to Animal Law. It features articles on the state of animal law in Florida, Pet Trusts, Equine Lien Laws, an Integrated Animal Court Proposal, the law on dog bites, and…

Mark your calendars for October 13 if you are interested in learning more about the laws that apply to animal shelters and non-profit animal rescues. The ABA's Tort Trial & Insurance Practice Section's Animal Law Committee Committee…

Portland dogs continue to be at risk from toxic algae in the Willamette River. The current harmful algal bloom has reportedly been confirmed as a species of cyanobacteria (often called blue- green algae) known as Microcystis aeruginosa. In a…

In its recent opinion in State v. Nix, 355 Or 777 (2014), the Oregon Supreme Court held that a conviction for animal neglect involving multiple individual animals was not subject to Oregon’s merger clause, which would generally combine…

In its recent opinion in State v. Fessenden, 355 Or. 759 (2014), the Oregon Supreme Court upheld the warrantless seizure of a horse in critical condition that led to a successful criminal prosecution of animal abuse and neglect charges.…

Animal Law Blog

Apologies (yet again) for how little I post on this blog anymore. This start-a-museum thing has really become quite the project!Anywho, as I've said before (and anyone reading this blog likely agrees with as well), an improvement in any…

A council has become the first in the UK to pass a motion banning the sale of controversial delicacy foie gras in its city.After a meeting in York, councillors voted in favour of a motion put forward by local Labour councillor Paul…

To all Virginia nonprofits, this is a reminder that May 15 is the deadline to renew your Form 102 with the Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (VDACS) Office of Charitable and Regulatory Programs. Organizations that wish…

The resumption of commercial horse slaughter in the United States was blocked on Friday, January 17, when President Obama signed a congressional budget bill that removed funding for USDA inspection of horse slaughter plants. This action…

In an order dated December 13, 2013, a copy of which can be downloaded here, the United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit denied an emergency motion for injunction pending appeal filed by the Humane Society of the United States…

As discussed in this prior post, the Humane Society of the United States and a variety of other groups and individuals brought suit to permanently enjoin the slaughter of horses at two plants that had been granted Food Safety Inspection…

If you are served with legal papers it is important to determine what type of papers you received. Are you being sued or are you being called to court or a deposition as a witness. It is worth a call to a litigation attorney to help you…

Whether you have been sued or need to sue someone, it is important to know what to do both before the need for litigation arises. Careful record keeping and document organization are the best ways to help your business litigation attorney. …

Anyone who wants to buy a business needs to be cautious before signing an offer. It is critical to consult with a lawyer who is experienced in California business sales to guide you through the process. Very often the business purchase…

Animal Rights: The Abolitionist Approach

Someone wrote to me and said that a welfarist who promotes “cage-free” eggs and other forms of “happy exploitation” suggested that the abolitionist approach was limited and did not provide an effective program for…

Let’s Change the Conversation Right now, the discussion about animals is focused on treatment and how to “improve” animal exploitation. As of this time, there really isn’t any serious discussion about whether we should…

BBC News reports: Almost a quarter of men surveyed in a UN report looking at violence against women in parts of Asia have admitted to committing at least one rape. That is disgusting but not surprising. Rape and sexual assault are daily…

The answer is mostly “yes” and judges typically have looked at pets as personal property and considered the usual factors in this analysis. However, in recent years pets, particularly dogs, have been the focus of custody disputes…

An elderly Italian woman has bequeathed 2 million euros worth of property to her beloved dog. Under her will, her dog Kikko will inherit, two apartments, several land estates, and bank accounts. Italian law does not give recognize the…

This article outlines the rush of bills relating to a range of issues regarding the treatment of animals. There is a bill prohibiting the use of dogs in the hunting of bears and bobcats. Another bill raises the penalties for those…